Pontus Marine LTD- Leader of fishing industry in Somaliland

Sunday, April 24, 2016

Commentary - The rich and the poor in ‪Somaliland

There is a huge gap between the rich and the poor in Somaliland. There are the super-rich and the super-poor, with little or no middle class.‬

While some in Somaliland boast about their wealth and spend lavishly on silly things , many among my people die in the high seas in search of better life . Last week more than 500 people drowned off the Greek islands and most of them were from Somaliland and Somalia. These young people had been driven from their homes by poverty and lack of jobs. Many of them had graduated and then found themselves in the streets with no work or income. Their ill-fated journey to Europe was in desperation.

Life is not fair . The world is not fair. Even in Somaliland , the rich know little about the suffering of the poor. They don't know about the hunger in the next door. A good example is the poor people that live in Dami district of the capital. Most of the families that live in this district merely get one meal a day. Some even don’t put plates on the table for days.
Drought, failed rains and hostile weather also have compounded the situation in the countryside. The pastoralists have lost many of their livestock this year. “The drought has led to loss of livestock out-migration, a sharp fall in crop production resulting in higher food prices, severe water shortages, rising household debt and increases in disease outbreaks and malnutrition.” Reuters wrote about the drought in Somaliland.
I wonder if the rich and the politicians will ever come to their senses and look for ways to help and alleviate the suffering of masses in Somaliland .
(M. Ali - Medeshi)